Court denies maintenance, custody of children to woman

Rejecting the appeal of a woman denied maintenance from her estranged husband by a trial court, a Delhi court has said that there was an unexplained delay on her part in challenging the order.

Additional Sessions Judge (ASJ) Sanjay Bansal, while dismissing the plea of the woman, seeking interim maintenance in a domestic violence case against her husband, upheld the trial court order and said that she was shielding her inaction regarding delay in filing the appeal.

The woman, who had also sought custody of her two children, had blamed her counsel for the delay.

"Impugned order was passed on November 18, 2013 and certified copy of the order was applied on December 20, 2013 which itself was beyond period of limitation. There is no explanation as to why it was not applied earlier.

"In my view, the woman is merely shielding her inaction by putting the blame on the counsel... There is no sufficient cause for condoning the delay," the judge said, while rejecting the woman's contention that there was delay because her counsel gave her the copy in January 2014.

The woman had filed an appeal challenging the metropolitan magistrate's (MM) order which refused to grant her interim maintenance and custody of her children on the ground that she was "leading an adulterous life and was living with someone".

The woman had, however, also moved an application before the ASJ while seeking condonation of delay in filing the appeal.

The husband, who was accused by the woman for dowry harassment, denied the allegations and told the court that his wife had extra-marital affair because of which she left him and their children.

He also contended that the delay on her part in filing the appeal was not explained properly and she was putting all the blame on the counsel to hide her negligence and carelessness.

The woman, however pleaded before the court that she got the copy of the trial court order two months after it was pronounced and submitted that if delay was not condoned, she would suffer irreparable loss.